Customer Reviews

Dinosaur Alphabet

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

(Review by L. Jim Khennedy) This is a marvelous and - at second glance, unusual, even problematic - book for dinosaur fans. The author, Harry S. ("Dr. Howl") Robins, has put together a beautiful package of dino love with three elements: brief odes in verse to 26 of his favorite giant reptiles, incredible illustrations of each and a section of scientific notes on his subjects. Robins' affection for the dearly departed monsters is palpable and affecting throughout; the book could almost be called "The Joy of Dinosaurs" and - with qualifications - is a must for any comprehensive saurapod library.

Being deeply poetry-impaired (I consider Dr. Seuss to be the greatest American poet), I am not qualified to comment on Robins' verse and probably shouldn't mention, even as an aside, that it did little for me. The artwork, however, is the stuff of dreams, and are the book's real raison d'etre. Robins' style is intricate and fantastical, noticably cartoonish and decidedly trippy. Every creature (one for each letter of the alphabet) receives a detailed black and white portrait to grace its illuminated letter ("M" for "Monoclonius") and a full-page illustration with lovingly rendered prehistoric settings in full, groovy, colour.

Among Harry Robins' many claims to fame is a significant body of work as an underground cartoonist and illustrator. His usual creations involve black-and-white/pen-and-ink panels crammed to overflowing with intricate background details - mad scientist paraphernalia, little imps, sylphs, succubi and monsters, unlikely distant landscapes and, yes, dinosaurs.
It defies comparison to the work of any other artist. Try to imagine, perhaps, Hieronymus Bosch and M.C. Escher collaborating on an E.C. horror comic. In his own special, labor-intensive genre of monochromatic fantastical art, Robins is without peer.

The colour illustrations in The Dinosaur Alphabet represent a significant departure for him. They are both the genius and the problematic part of the book. Perhaps in recognition of his greater experience with black & white, Robins chose to do a somewhat simplified version of his usual intricate pen-work, including cross-hatched shading, and then paint over the monochrome drawings with vivid water colours. The result is imagery that, while striking, can give one a vaguely uncomfortable feeling of "wrongness."

Black & white line drawings are by nature an abstraction: even when realistically reproducing the contours of the real world, they are inherently different from the living world of colour, where shadows and shading appear as gradations of hue, and different objects and parts of objects are rarely demarcated by sharp black lines. The combination of the stricter realism of colour painting with the abstraction of drawing tended to put this one viewer, at least, off-balance. At the same tyme, it must be said that the almost psychedelic colours, fantastical (but scientifically irreproachable!) creatures and alien backgrounds can definitely be grooved out to when one is in the right frame of mind.

Finally, the question of exactly who this book is intended for. It has the look of a children's book, and the kids will definitely love the delirious art, but much of the vocabulary of the verse ("Ceratosaurus, large of tooth ... with serrate back;" "Fabrosaurus ... Heard no more the hot sirocco") will be beyond that of most grade schoolers, while the "Notes" section is unquestionably meant for well-educated, probably adult, readers, in particular those with a scientific turn of mind.

My guess is that the largest audience demographic that will find this book indispensable consists of monster-loving stoners, who will surely trip out ecstatically, grooving on the vivid, elaborate artwork, and perhaps find especial insight into the poetry. Adult dino fanciers of all stripes will surely appreciate it, even more so, and any hippy paleontologists are hereby advised that they must immediately rush out to buy this one, or bitterly regret it.

Beautiful--exceptional!--drawings, four color art, clever, amusing poems--great coffee table book, great for dinosaur fans, children, grandchildren...

I saw this book reviewed in a very unlikely place: Heavy Metal -- yes, the adult fantasy comic. Not the first place you'd look for a kids' book. The reviewer noted this oddness. But it's a beautifully illustrated book with a wide range of dinosaurs running the alphabet from A to Z.

I gave a copy to each of the two 4-year-olds I know, and both really liked it. Their mothers liked it too. My local bookstores didn't have it in stock, and Amazon got it to me quickly.

All the other alphabetic dinosaurs book I have are mere shadows of this one.

Written and illustrated by renowned muralist Harry S. Robins, Dinosaur Alphabet is a marvelous ABC picturebook in which each letter of the alphabet corresponds to the name of a different dinosaur. An accompanying four-line poem and a colorful picture, both corresponding to the latest scientific knowledge about dinosaur species, bring the reptilian giants of the past to life for eager young readers. An extended section of supplementary notes at the end explains numerous details about dinosaurs that are only briefly mentioned in the poems. Many of the dinosaurs have long or difficult-to-pronounce names, so this is not a book that a young child still working on memorizing his or her ABCs will be able to read without help. Some illustrations also feature violence scenes of prey dinosaurs being attacked by carnivores. However, Dinosaur Alphabet is an excellent, scientifically accurate book especially for budding young dinosaur lovers and prospective paleontologists. "Deinonychus, with raptor squawks, / Pounces and slashes, tears and feeds, / Thinning the ranks of those she stalks- / Her great claw strikes down all she needs."

"Dinosaur Alphabet" is beautiful, fun and clever - Both children and adults will be drawn into the fascinating, colorful illustrations and rhymes, and older readers will surely derive much pleasure from the detailed, scientifically chatty (sometimes slyly humorous) notes at the back of the book. Each creature's name also gets its own special ornamental letter, in the manner of the illuminated manuscripts of old. Dinosaur enthusiasts of all ages will be delighted to see the subject so beautifully, brilliantly treated. This splendid volume would be so inspiring for the budding young scientist or artist -- a Jurassic gem!